Life & Work with Claudia Pretelin of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Claudia Pretelin.

Hi Claudia, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born and raised in Mexico City. As an only child with parents who worked long hours, I often had to find ways to keep myself company—sometimes that meant getting lost in television, sometimes in music, books, or especially films. My school years were a mix of public and private education, but the common thread was always my leaning toward the arts and humanities. I dreamed of studying film, but in Mexico, that path was mostly for those with means, so I pivoted and chose communications instead. That decision turned out to be a gift: I got to dabble in advertising, journalism, photography, and radio, each one lighting a new creative spark. After graduation, I landed a position as a curatorial assistant at a photography museum, where I met artists from all over the world whose work lit up my imagination. The biggest turning point was meeting Graciela Iturbide, who took me under her wing as her personal assistant. Working alongside her for over a decade changed my life in ways no classroom could. It also gave me the flexibility to keep learning, eventually earning a master’s and a PhD in Art History at UNAM. But honestly, nothing compared to the real-world education I received during those unforgettable years with Graciela.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Change has never come easily to me, but my life has offered plenty of opportunities to practice. One of the most pivotal moments came when I was awarded a fellowship to do research for my PhD thesis at the George Eastman Museum. It was there, in Rochester, New York—a place that felt a world away from Mexico City—that I met the person who would become my husband. We spent three years navigating a long-distance relationship while I finished graduate school, and eventually, I found myself packing my life into suitcases and moving to the United States for good.

Leaving behind everything I knew in Mexico was both terrifying and exciting. It was the start of a new chapter—one that would push me to grow in ways I never expected. Since 2018, I’ve called Los Angeles my home.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Los Angeles has been a place of constant reinvention for me, both personally and professionally. Since arriving, I have worked to weave together the layers of my identity, ultimately building a career that reflects my passions. As an art historian, I launched Instruments of Memory to spotlight women in the arts through in-depth interviews. Additionally, as an independent curator, I have organized exhibitions and forged meaningful collaborations with artists and organizations across Mexico and the United States.

I am excited to share that Natura Naturata: Nature’s Action, an exhibition I have been working on for the past three years, will open at Descanso Gardens on January 24th. This project was a collaboration with my close colleague, Julieta Pestarino, and features photography, installation, and video by eight established and emerging artists: Laura Aguilar, Luciana Abait, Jackie Castillo, Maru García, Graciela Iturbide, Carolina Montejo, and Rosana Schoijett. The exhibition examines humanity’s evolving relationship with the natural world through themes of migration, adaptation, fragility, and human impact.

These experiences, alongside my daily work as a Special Features Producer for Vinegar Syndrome, have brought me back to my first love: film. Creating “making-of” featurettes and interviews has allowed me to step into the world of filmmaking, a field that once seemed out of reach. I am proud to work with such a creative team dedicated to film preservation and am grateful for the trust they place in me as we explore the behind-the-scenes of many iconic films.

Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
When I look back, it’s clear that my family’s passions shaped the person I became. Even though my parents didn’t work in creative fields, their love for movies, books, and music seeped into everything we did together. They always encouraged me to follow my interests, no matter how unconventional they seemed.

My grandfather, maybe without ever realizing it, was the first to spark my fascination with photography. Some of my fondest childhood memories are of sneaking into his darkroom—the smell of chemicals in the air, watching images slowly appear in the trays. After he passed away, I took over his archive and found treasures I never expected: photos of Mexican celebrities and even pictures of US presidents like Nixon and Kennedy. Those images felt like secret windows into another world, and they made me fall in love with the power of storytelling through still and moving pictures.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://instrumentsofmemory.com/

Image Credits
Image 1
Claudia Pretelin
Photo by Nick Brandreth
Image 2
Natura Naturata: Nature’s Action
Carolina Montejo – Earth Cosmos, 2025 (detail)
Images courtesy of the artist and Descanso Gardens